Free As A Bird
by Empress-Eerian-Sadow
Summary: Seifer got sent to prison after the Time Compression. When he gets released early for good behavior, he and Quistis are forced to deal with the feelings they devoloped during his trial.
1. Memory

A/N: OK, looks like I get to make more apologies to all the readers of my other fics. This one started tickling the back of my mind in the itsy bitsy hours of the morning, and it wouldn't go away, no matter how hard I tried to work on Stories or I Came Back For You. So, here it is. Hopefully it will leave me alone for a couple of days so that I can get something done on I Came Back. I hope. But, read on loyal fans and let me know what you think of this one too! Since my muse is back from vacation, I promise to update all my stories at least every two weeks.   
  
Eerian  
  
DISCLAIMER: The _only_ part of FF8 that I own is my copy of the game, purchased second hand from the video game trade store I work for. Props to Squaresoft/Square-Enix for having such a cool game series tho. But unless they decide to hire me for my story writing talent (yeah _right_!) then all my final fantasy work will be for nothing but fun.

* * *

**_Free As a Bird_**

**__**

**__**

_ "You're just going? Just like that?"  
  
"I thought you would understand."  
  
"Understand what?" She throws her hands out to the sides. "What's to understand? You're just letting them take you away!"  
  
"I have to do this. Someone has to pay for what happened because of the Sorceresses."  
  
"But it wasn't your fault! You weren't even in control!"  
  
He shakes his head. "It doesn't matter. Even if they were controlling my mind, I still killed people. I still destroyed lives and property."  
  
"But…"  
_  
_"And I enjoyed it. No, Quisty, its better this way. Let it go."  
  
"We can think of something. We can convince the courts that it wasn't your fault."  
  
He shakes his head again. "We can't and you know it. Besides, maybe all those years of thinking I was so much better than everyone made it my fault. Maybe made me weak enough that they could control me. 'Cause they sure as hell couldn't control you guys."  
  
He smirks then, something that he could have trademarked by now. "Besides, without me around, maybe the 'great commander' can get some work done."  
  
She isn't amused by his weak attempt at humor and they both know it. "Seifer, please…"  
  
He places a finger over her lips to stop her plea. "I'll write. I promise. It'll be over soon." He places a kiss on her forehead. "Goodbye, Quistis."  
  
She can't respond as he turns to leave. Talking will make her lose control, and then he'll_ _know how she truly feels about this.  
  
She stands alone in his room for several minutes after the guards escort him away before she can speak again. "Goodbye, love," she whispers to the empty room.  
_

* * *

Quistis Trepe lay awake in her bed trying to escape her memories.  
  
Seifer Almsay had been put in prison three weeks ago for his actions during the Sorceress' attempt to take over the world. She'd been his defense council at the trial six weeks ago. It had been a slow trial for the amount of evidence presented, due largely to the fact that SeeD insisted that he was innocent. In the end, Seifer had ended it all by changing his plea to guilty.  
  
He'd come away from the control of Ultimecia a changed man. She'd been more than a bit intrigued by that. By the end of the trial, she'd been stunned to realize that she'd fallen in love with him.  
  
She, Quistis Trepe, was in love with Seifer Almsay.  
  
But by the time she realized it, it was too late. Seifer was in prison and she was teaching at the Garden again. She'd been so devastated by his leaving that she hadn't been able to tell him how she felt. She cursed herself for that.  
  
Maybe things would have been different if she'd said something. But she hadn't, and now her guilt kept her awake in the wee hours of the morning.  
  
Just like it had every night for the last three weeks. 


	2. OneEyed Beauties

Chapter 2--One Month Later  
  
_--Dear Quistis,  
  
I miss you--_  
  
He crumpled up the paper and dropped it to the floor with a dozen other badly started letters.  
  
Not that it wasn't true. He missed her so much it hurt. But one didn't send home a latter to his lady love starting out like that. Seifer Almsay was no fool; he knew that would make here feel worse than she already did.  
  
After all, he'd heard what she'd said as he was leaving--when she'd thought he was too far away to hear. _"Goodbye, love."  
_  
God, he'd wanted to run back and call the whole thing off. To grab her and just run away somewhere--anywhere--and just be with her.  
  
But he couldn't. His reasons for going stood firm. He knew he needed help--and this would be the only way people would ever believe he'd gotten it.  
  
But still, the guards had mocked him throughout the trip to the Desert Prison for the tears coursing down his face.  
  
Sighing deeply, he shook off his memories and looked down at the stack of blank paper in front of him.   
  
_Maybe the fourteenth time is the charm_, he thought wryly. With his trademark smirk on his face, he put his pencil to the paper once again.  
  
_--Dear Quistis,--  
_  
"Almsay."  
  
With a sigh, he turned to look at the door to his cell. One of the block guards was standing in the open doorway, looking back at him.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Come on. Someone to see you."  
  
_Quisty? Nah, probably not. Holiday at Garden isn't for another couple of weeks._ He set his pencil down on his tiny writing desk. _Guess I'd better go see who it is.  
_  
He got up and went to the door, extending his wrists for the cuffs he knew were coming. The guard clamped them on, and the two of them moved off to the visiting room.  
  
A smile lit up his face when he saw who was waiting for him at the table in the private room the guard directed him to.  
  
"Fujin!"  
  
She turned, and smiled at him. "GREETINGS, SEIFER."  
  
He wanted to hug her, but resisted the urge as the guard took the cuffs off. They gave him a lot of trust since he was here of his own accord (and was a model prisoner), but breaking the rules would take some of that trust away. And hugging Fujin was very against the rules.  
  
He sat down at the table across from her, nodding to his therapist, who was taking notes in a corner.  
  
"WHO?" Fujin asked him.  
  
"My therapist." Seifer shrugged. "Says he's evaluating my social interactions with people under monitored conditions or something like that. He did it when Matron was here last week too."  
  
"MATRON?"  
  
"You know, from the orphanage." Mentioning that the dark haired woman who'd visited him last week was the Sorceress Edea probably wouldn't reflect well on him just now.  
  
"UNDERSTOOD." Even if she didn't, Seifer knew she'd get the whole story from Zell or Quistis later anyway.  
  
"But, enough about him. How are you? I didn't know you'd been released from the hospital."  
  
Fujin sat quietly for a long moment, staring at some point in the center of the table. Seifer took the opportunity to look her over.  
  
She looked older now; worn around the edges. The strength she'd always worn so easily before, looked more forced now. The beating the SeeDs had given her had wounded more than just her body.  
  
But when she looked up, her smile was completely genuine. "BETTER. SQUALL APOLOGIZED."  
  
"Huh. Wouldn't have thought that. Guess he's changed too."  
  
A long silence greeted that remark. Before it could grown uncomfortable, Seifer broke it.  
  
"So, how's Rajin? I haven't heard from him since I left."  
  
"FINE. YOU?" It felt a lot like she'd been waiting for an opportunity to ask the question with just one word.  
  
He chuckled. "Its not so bad here. I see Jordy over there for therapy and rehabilitation every day. I get three meals a day, and my own room--which is bigger than my old dorm--and tons of time to read all those books Quisty tried to get me to read while I was still at Garden. They even let me have pencils in my cell, since Jordy said I wasn't suicidal. Dunno what ten years of this is gonna be like, but so far it isn't too bad."  
  
"GLAD. ALLOWED GIFTS?"  
  
"Yeah, but its all screened. So nothing suspicious or I won't get it."  
  
"AFFIRMATIVE."  
  
"Almsay."  
  
Seifer looked at the guard, who had come back in.  
  
"Time's up."  
  
"Already? Huh." He looked back at Fujin. "Well, take care of yourself, Fu. And tell Rajin to write or visit or something."  
  
"AFFIRMATIVE."  
  
"See ya 'round, Fujin."  
  
"FAREWELL." Jordy moved to take her place at the table as the guard led Fujin out.  
  
"Well," he said, "Might as well have our session now, don't you think?"  
  
This had probably been in the plan all along. "Sure. Why not?"  
  
"That's the spirit!"

* * *

An hour and a half later, Seifer sat back down behind his desk again.  
  
--_Dear Quistis,--_ the paper in front of him read. Picking up his pencil, he began to write.  
  
_ --Fujin came to see me today. I can't believe you didn't tell me she was out of the hospital! Or have I not gotten that letter yet?--_


	3. Sparkling Sorrow

**Chapter 3—Six months later**

Quistis sat at her desk chewing on the end of her pen as she read Seifer's latest letter. She still missed him terribly, but the letters helped.

But she wasn't sure how she was going to get through nine and a half more years of this.

She was glad that she had dismissed class long ago when she started crying.

"Quistis?" She hastily wiped her eyes and looked up at Rinoa. "Are you all ok?"

She nodded, and pulled a tissue from the box on her desk. "I'm all right. I just…"

"You miss him. I know." Rinoa crouched down next to the blond teacher's chair.

"Yeah." Of all the people in Balamb Garden, only Matron and Rinoa knew how she felt about Seifer. And Rinoa had figured it out on her own.

_"I listen to how you talk about him," she'd said. "You talk about Seifer like I do about Squall."_

_"What?"_

_"Its obvious to anyone with ears and a brain how you feel about him."_

_"Really?"_

_"Well, except maybe Squall."_

In that moment, she'd come to like and respect the general's daughter more than she ever thought she would. In fact, Quistis had gone out of her way to be friendly to Rinoa after that. Something that had worked out to her benefit, because now she had a friend that she could confide her troubles in.

"Well, this won't keep you from missing him, but maybe it will help cheer you up some." The former freedom fighter held her hand up under Quistis' nose.

Quisty's eyes opened wide at the diamond and platinum ring sparkling on the girl's finger. "Oh my God! He proposed to you!"

Rinoa giggled. "Yeah. In the cafeteria. In front of everybody. It wasn't even romantic!"

Hours later, as she stood in front of her mirror brushing her blond hair, Quistis thought about Squall and Rinoa's engagement.

Or, more precisely, how it was making her feel.

Alone. Very, very alone.

She wasn't jealous of them. Not really. They were happy together, and they deserved it. The whole thing was just making her miss Seifer even more.

She set her brush down and sighed. _Maybe Rinoa's right. I should just borrow the Ragnarock and fly out there to see him. Selphie'd be more than glad to take me._

A tear ran down her cheek, followed by several more. A moment later, she'd broken down sobbing.


	4. Anguished Disaster

and here is the latest installment of free as a bird for those of you that i know have been waiting. this chapter alone took me two months to write cause i had one massive writer's block. so i guess it was a good thing that i had no way to post, or i would have felt guilty as hell. but i found my chainsaw in the boxes of stuff from my move and demolished said block. yay!

so, yeah. here it is.

eerian

disclaimer:(Note: Seifer wanted to read the disclaimer, but he had a relapse into evilness, so i have to do it myself.) i don't own any of the final fantasy franchise except my copies of ALL the games. i wish i did tho. if i did, i wouldn't just have to read about the wonderful bishonen therein--or look at the pretty pictures of them drawn by people with much more artistic talent than me. i'd also be able to make some money off this fic if i did own some of it, and then i wouldn't be poor no more.

* * *

Chapter 4—Seven months later

Seifer screamed as the sharpened edge of his assailant's spoon sliced through his left cheek. Even as his face exploded in agony, he had to admire Jac's ingenuity for managing to sneak the thing past the hundred or so guards that patrolled the mess hall at meal times.

Jac had held a grudge against him since the day he'd arrived and Seifer still didn't know why. This wasn't even the first time the other man had attacked him. Just the first successful one.

And Seifer was pretty pissed off about it. Not only would he be sporting another scar—courtesy of a complete looser—but the blood running down his face was dripping onto the book he'd been reading. That book—a gift from Quistis was one of the two personal possessions he kept at the prison. Now, it was ruined and he didn't know if he'd be able to get a replacement copy.

As Jac came in for another strike, Seifer grabbed his wrist in a vice-like grip. Then, using the other man's momentum he twisted Jac's arm behind him and pinned him against the reading table.

"You want to tell me what that was for?" Seifer asked, as he watched the guards move across the room. _Where is Dawson? He should have been close enough to stop this. _But he didn't dare spare any extra attention to look for the missing guard. If he did, Jac would more than likely get loose and attack him again.

"That was for my family. But you'll get the rest of what you deserve soon enough." More than a little madness shone in Jac's eyes as he said those words. "I'm not the only one who wants you dead."

Seifer gratefully handed Jac off to the guard who arrived then. He turned to look for Dawson, who should have kept this whole event from happening.

"Oh shit," he said when he saw Dawson. "Somebody get a medic." _Not that it'll help. He's dead._

The guard was draped over one of the lounge chairs like a discarded rag, with a spoon imbedded in his throat.

"Almsay, what was that?" One of the other guards asked.

"Get a medic. That asshole got Dawson too."

The guard followed Seifer's line of sight to the corpse of his co-worker. "Oh God."

"And how does the fact that Jac nearly killed you earlier today make you feel?"

Seifer was damned tired of that question—all thirteen ways Jordy had found to ask it.

"Look, Jordy, you've asked me that question at least a dozen times already. And I came up with a dozen answers for it already. It didn't make me feel anything because he _didn't_ nearly kill me. He did kill Dawson, and then he cut my face up. I wasn't in danger of dying. I was pissed off because he jumped me like that, but that was _all._ No fear, no wanting to shove a gunblade down his throat and pulling the trigger. Just pissed off because he attacked me and ruined my book."

"I see…" Jordy made some notes on his legal pad, then tapped his pen against his chin. "What about Dawson? How—"

"Did it make me feel?" Seifer gave Jordy a weak half smile. "I knew that was what you were going to ask.

"And it made me feel like shit. Dawson was a great guy. Used to give me advice on what to write to my girl to keep her from worrying about me. He had a beautiful wife and this little girl who's gonna be a knock out when she grows up.

"And he's dead because some guy I don't even know has a grudge against me for the gods only know what.

"I did some bad stuff—really bad stuff. But I've accepted responsibility for it all. And I'll never stop regretting it. But Dawson had nothing to do with any of it.

"I feel like I have the blood of another innocent on my hands—and I'm not even responsible for his death." Seifer dropped his head into his hands. "No, I'm responsible and completely innocent at the same time."

"Well, that was quite a speech. Very profound." Jordy made another note on his notepad.

Seifer chuckled half-heartedly. "Thanks, Jordy."

"Anytime. I think we'll wrap up there." He flipped the cover closed on the pad. "Seriously though--and I'm asking as a friend, not your shrink—how are you feeling?"

"I've been worse. But I'll be okay."

"Good. Get some sleep and give your lady a call. I'm sure she'll help put things in perspective your you."

"Yeah. Probably." _Or she'll just accidentally make me feel worse. I'll call her in the morning._


	5. Promises Promises

heeeeeeeey kids!

sorry bout the delay in the post here. stuff came up that meant i wans't getting it up the other night like i thought i would. but here it is! and the next chapter is soon to come!

Disclaimer: don't own any of the franchise but my copies of the game. not making any money here.

* * *

**Chapter 5—Seven Months Later**

"Instructor Trepe, there's a call for you."

Quistis gave Squall's secretary an odd look. "Then please take a message. I'm in the middle of class." She indicated the students who were leaning over their study panels.

"Yes, Instructor, but Commander Leonheart said that you need to take this call."

_Squall wants me to interrupt class to take a call? What's going on?_ Suddenly, her mind was full of worried thoughts for Seifer.

She glanced up at the clock and decided that it couldn't hurt to let the students out a little early, rather than find someone to watch the class.

"Everyone," she waited until she had their attention. "Finish what you are working on, then you may all be dismissed. If you have questions, I'll be here later this afternoon."

There were murmurs of "Yes, Instructor," and "What? Really?" as she left the room. Quickly, she walked down the hall to the elevator. As it descended to the basement where Squall had installed the new communications center, her mind turned over the numerous possibilities for the call.

All of them managed to revolve around Seifer. _There's been trouble at the prison and I have to get Seifer out of it, I bet. …What if he's hurt? What if he's dead?_

_Oh, God. What if he _is _dead? What do I do then? _Fortunately she entered the communications center in time to interrupt that train of thought.

"Hey, Quistis!" Selphie said, looking up from her post at the main comm board. "You can take your call over there." She indicated a screen panel in the far corner. It was a respectable enough distance away to give her some privacy. Quistis appreciated that.

"Thanks. Um…How do I access it?" she asked, realizing it was her first trip to the center since Laguna Loire and the city of Esthar had donated it to the Garden during the trial.

"Here, I'll show you." The brunette hopped out of her chair and skipped over to the consol. "I love all this technical stuff the Mr. Laguna keeps sending over."

She flipped a switch on the console below the screen and Seifer's face flickered into being on the screen. "Here ya go, Quisty. Hi, Seifer!"

Quistis felt a good portion of the dread she'd been feeling drain away as Seifer replied, "Hey, Selphie. Go away."

Selphie giggled and walked back to the main board. "I'll be here if you need me."

Quistis didn't waste any time on pleasantries as she noticed the stitches on Seifer's left cheek. "My God, Seifer! What happened?"

He smirked. "Missed you too, babe."

"You know I miss you." She shook her head. "But your face. What happened to you?"

"Some asshole tried to kill me yesterday in the rec room." All traces of amusement were gone from his face. "He did get Dawson."

"Oh, Seifer…" she really didn't know what to say.

"Hey, I'm okay, Quisty. Really." He gave her a smile that was almost real. "Its only three stitches, see?"

Quistis couldn't help but smile back at his bravado.

"That's my girl," he replied.

"Always."

"Quistis, I—" he broke off suddenly, almost as if what he was going to say had bitten him.

"What?" Her face fell into a worried frown. "Seifer, what is it?"

"Its nothing. Forget it." Seifer looked away from the monitor. "My book got ruined."

_Nice change of subject, Seifer._ "What book?"

"The one you gave me at the beginning of the trial. I was reading it when he jumped me. Sorry."

"Its not your fault. I'll get you another one." She smiled—a real one, not something encouraged by brave words or false humor. "And I'll bring it to you myself."

"Really?" he looked overjoyed at the prospect.

"I promise. Is tomorrow too soon?" She was more than done with this not seeing him business.

"No, tomorrow's pretty open for me. But don't you have classes?"

"Someone will cover them for me."

"Then I can't wait to see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

Seifer's face blinked off the monitor, leaving the hum of an open line behind. "Selphie, how do I turn this thing off?"

"Green switch," the brunette replied. "You okay?"

"Huh?" Quistis was genuinely confused. "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, 'cause Seifer's hurt and you can't do anything about it." Selphie shrugged. "We all know how much you miss him."

Quistis flopped down in the chair next to Selphie's. "Is it that obvious?"

"Only to someone who knows you." Selphie reached out and took Quistis' hand and squeezed it. "I'm here if you need me. To talk or fly or whatever. 'Kay?"

"Thanks, Selphie." She smiled. "So, can you fly me to the prison tomorrow?"

"Sure. And I bet Irvine would sub for you, too."

"Selphie, Irvine failed the class I teach four times. I'm not sure that's a good idea."

The younger girl rolled her eyes. "Its for one day. As long as you leave details, it shouldn't be too hard for him to handle. Besides, he needs the extra money he'd get for substituting." She grinned wickedly. "He's trying to surprise me with a house in Balamb."

"Selphie, that's great! I promise not to tell him you already know. When are the two of you going to go for something a little more formal?"

"After all the excitement from 'Commander Leonheart and Miss Heartlily's shocking engagement' wears off." Selphie made little quotation marks in the air with her fingers. "Please. The only people who were surprised were her dad and anyone who hadn't met them."

"I know. I wasn't even really surprised by the way he did it. It was just…"

"So Squall!" Selphie finished in unison with her. Then the normally bouncy girl turned thoughtful for a moment. "But, you'd better tell Squall that you'll be gone tomorrow. I'll call Irvie and tell him that you need him to sub. If he can't, we'll find someone for you."

"Thanks, Selphie. You're great!" Quistis stood up and walked back to the elevator. After a moment's hesitation she punched the button for Squall's office.

The ride to the office was long—longer than the three story trip should have been. For some reason Quistis was nervous about talking to Squall. And she didn't really understand why.

The elevator opened into the small waiting room before Squall's office. The elevator to the bridge was up, indicating that someone was up there. The door to Squall's office was open, and Quistis could see Zell and Rinoa inside.

"Is everything all right?" Rinoa asked as soon as Quistis entered the office.

"Mostly," she replied. "Seifer was attacked yesterday."

"What?" Squall asked, as Rinoa exclaimed, "Oh my God!"

"He's okay," Quistis told them, sitting down in a chair. "Just a few stitches. But one of the guards was killed."

Squall shook his head. "We knew stuff like this was going to happen." When Quistis opened her mouth to voice an objection, he raised a hand. "We tried to stop it by keeping him out of prison, but it didn't work. We need to do something to keep more innocents from being killed if someone tries this again.

If Quistis was reading Squall right, he was actually approaching this problem in a pro-Seifer manner, which was surprising. "What do you have in mind?"

"I want to try to have him remanded into SeeD custody," he replied.


	6. Heated Discussing

hey all! lookie a new chappy! sorry its short. but it wouldn't tag onto the end of the last one very well, or the begining of the next one. stupid transition chapters. such is writing.

i want to thank all of my reviewers here today. i probably would have ditched this fic for awhile in favor of other things if not for you guys. here you all are, with my special thanks: Lucian's Angel87, Sakura Loire, Neko-Yuff16, Ezri-Candy, Lady Deathstryke, frost , CWolf2, and Pretty Green Eyes. 'hands out Seifer and Quistis keychains to everyone' other people give out plushies or cookies. i give keychains. very useful. seriously, you guys are great. luv to ya all!

now, on with the fic! you've all read the disclaimer by now anyway!**

* * *

**

**Chapter 6**

"Do _what_?" Zell exclaimed.

"I want to have him remanded into SeeD custody," Squall repeated. "I've been thinking about it for awhile now. Laguna thinks that the courts will go for it, since he's one of ours. I agree with his assessment of the situation."

He looked directly at Quistis. "So, I need to know what his council thinks."

She turned the idea over in her head. If he was remanded into SeeD custody, he'd be here, at Balaam Garden. That could cause its own complications.

But he'd be _here_ where she could see him much, much more.

"Squall," she said, "I'm his lawyer. I'm supposed to say I want him out of prison. Why are you asking?"

"Because I want to know what you think about it. I want Quistis Trepe's opinion, not Councilor Trepe's."

"Hold on a sec," Zell interrupted. "This is _Seifer_ we're talking about. Why do we want him here? We _hate_ him."

Quistis exchanged a pained look with Rinoa.

"Not all of us hate him, Zell," Squall told him. "And that's not the point. The point is this: people who do hate him are going to keep trying to kill him, and if he's in the prison he makes an easy target. If we leave him there, people who have nothing to do with this are going to keep getting hurt."

"Oh, so we bring him here, where we have school kids because they'll be _safer_?"

Quistis crossed her arms nervously. Rinoa put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"No, its not safer. But here, he'll have SeeD protection, which is a lot better than a bunch of prison guards who don't deserve to die for doing their jobs." Squall was beginning to sound angry.

"But we do," Zell threw back at him.

"We're mercenaries, Zell. Its what we do."

Zell took a step closer to Squall's desk, and leaned in toward the commander. "This is the stupidest idea I've ever heard, Squall."

"Noted," Squall replied. "You're dismissed."

"What?" Zell seemed taken aback.

"You heard me."

"Look, Squall—"

"Get. Out."

Quistis and Rinoa watched Zell stomp out angrily. "Squall, I'm not sure that was such a good idea," Rinoa told him.

"It'll be all right. He'll be back later. Besides," he gave Quistis a smile, "I couldn't say to him 'Zell, I'd like you to shut the hell up now, because Quistis is in love with Seifer and you're hurting her feelings,' could I?"

"Rinoa…" Quistis looked as if she'd been punched.

"I swear, I didn't tell him." Rinoa held her hands up in front of herself in defense.

"It was obvious that you wanted to keep it quiet," Squall told her. "But it isn't hard to read the signs, for someone who knows you."

"So Zell doesn't know me then?"

"Zell just doesn't pay attention." Rinoa giggled. "He'd probably be surprised that Selphie and Irvine are and item, too."

"Seriously, though. Quistis, how do you feel about having Seifer remanded into our custody?" Squall turned the conversation back to its original topic.

She put her chin on one hand as she leaned back in her chair. "The selfish part of me wants him here so badly that it hurts. But the practical part of me—the part that's looking at the big picture—isn't sure that's such a good idea.

"Zell isn't the only one here who hates Seifer. A lot of other Seeds and students do too, even if it's not for the same reasons. And if someone attacked from the outside, a lot of bystanders could get hurt." She paused, drawing in a deep breath. "And I don't think I could stay impartial to him if he were here."

Squall nodded. "I know. Laguna and I discussed all those things. For the security, he's offered to have the city of Esthar build us something to house him and several guards in. He won't be in the Garden at all, if we can help it.

"As for you being impartial, we're not asking that of you. Asking you to stand by while we locked him up and allowed only restricted contact with him would be like asking me to do that with Rinoa." He gave her a smirk that was decidedly Seifer-esque. "We saw how well that worked last time."

Slowly, Quistis nodded. "All right, let's do it."

"Great." Squall leaned back in his own chair. "I honestly thought you might be harder to convince than that."

She shook her head. "I didn't want him there in the first place. It never seemed right to me that he was being punished for Ultimecia's actions. Do you want him to know?"

"Not yet. After Laguna's people have finished up here we'll tell him."

"All right. I asked because I want to go see him tomorrow."

Squall just looked at her for a long moment. "Who's covering your class?" he asked finally.

"Irvine."

"And Selphie will fly you there and back?"

"Yes."

"All right. But don't make a habit of this."

She smiled brightly. "I won't. Rinoa, want to go shopping in town with me?"

"Sure," the other girl replied, jumping down from her perch on her fiancé's desk. "What're we getting?"

"A book for Seifer. Maybe some other things."

"Okay." Rinoa walked around Squall's desk and gave him a quick kiss. "Commander Leonheart will be here for hours still anyway."

"Whatever," Squall replied, with the ghost of a smile.

"I promise to have her home in time for bed," Quistis told him as she stood up.

"So," Rinoa said as they were walking out of the office, "Tell me all about it…"


	7. Visits

well, everyone, i've managed an update for this one! finally. ten years later. i've just had too much other stuff bouncing around in my head to get all this down in a timely manner. i've done several chapters of sunrise, several interludes and started two new fics that have been eating much of my creative energies. one's up--go check it out! its called Taken.

anyway! here's the new chapter! enjoy!

eerian**

* * *

**

Chapter 7—Seven months, 2 days later

"This way, Counselor," the guard said as he led Quistis through the final checkpoint and to the room where she'd be meeting Seifer.

Being his lawyer was definitely a good thing today. They were getting a private conference room where Selphie and tow guards would be monitoring a video-only camera feed next door. They'd be as alone as they could get in the prison.

"Here we are." The guard stopped in front of a door identical to all the others in the hall, except for a small number beneath a round window. "Just knock when you're ready to leave."

"Thank you." Quistis opened the door and entered the room. Inside, Seifer was sitting at a table talking to yet another guard.

Seifer stood up as she entered the room, a smile lighting up his face. "I knew you wouldn't let me down."

"When have I ever let you down?" She smiled in return.

"Never."

Quistis turned to the guard. "You can go now. We'll be fine."

"Yes, ma'am," the guard replied. "If you need anything, just knock." He matched actions to words and crossed the room to knock on the door to be let out.

Quistis set the bag she'd been carrying on the table and pulled a box out of it. "As promised."

Seifer took the box from her. "Its too big to be just a book. What is it?"

"Nothing that didn't get through inspection. Open it."

He did as told, setting the lid of the box off to one side. Nestled in the top of the package was the book she'd promised. Underneath the book were a box of pastels and a pad of paper saying simply, _From_ _Squall and Rinoa_. He removed these as well to find a plain white card envelope.

He took it out of the box and opened it, pulling out the card. Like the envelope, it was plain white with nothing at all printed on it. Curious, he opened the card, and felt tears come to his eyes as he read it.

Inside was a pink lipstick kiss in the color Quistis always wore. Beneath it she'd written, _Because I can't always be there to give you one when you need it_.

"Oh, Quisty…" He blinked rapidly, trying to keep the tears back so he could see her properly. "This is…No one's ever given me anything this wonderful before."

Unexpectedly, he pulled her into a hug.

"Seifer," she protested, hugging him back, "the cameras!"

"Screw 'em," he replied. "Let them punish me for this. I need it."

After that, they seperated, and he smirked. "Besides its not likely that _my_ lawyer is going to cry assault."

"No, its not." Quistis smiled, a bit sadly. "Look, Seifer—"

"I know. We keep going and we're just gonna get all mooshy and depressed. And then you'll be a wreck and no good to anyone tomorrow." He shrugged. "So we talk about something else."

"All right. Like what?"

"Like this present." He picked up the pastels. "From _Squall_ and Rinoa?"

"Mostly Rinoa, but Squall didn't object when she put his name on it."

"Yeah, well, she'd kick his ass if he tried."

They both laughed.

"Seriously, though," Quistis asked. "How are you doing?"

"Honestly?" He reached up to run his fingers over the stitches on his cheek. "I feel like shit."

"You want to tell me about it?"

"Yeah. I think I do."

She sat down in the chair across from him and waited for him to speak.

"I was reading in the lounge when it happened…"

* * *

Selphie tried to pretend that she didn't notice the depressed look Quistis was wearing on the way home. But about ten minutes out from the Garden, the instructor's sad silence finally got to be too much for her. 

"Hey, cheer up," Selphie told her.

"Huh?" Quistis replied. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you look like someone blew up the Garden on your birthday or something."

"Oh." Quistis gave he a half-hearted smile. "It's just getting so hard. Every little bit of contact I have with him just makes this harder. I don't know if I can take nine more years of this."

"Well, yeah, but if Squall's plan works, then he'll be at Balamb in, like, a year, right?" The brunette gave her friend a hopeful smile.

"Yeah, if it works." Quistis shrugged fatalistically. "But I'm just not sure it will. Ten years in prison was a hard enough sentence to get for him. A third of the judges wanted to execute him."

"Geeze, Quisty. Even you're not usually this pessimistic. Everything will work out all right. You'll see."

"I hope you're right." Quistis rode the rest of the way to Balamb Garden in silence.


	8. Liberty

okay, its a super short chapter, that i'm really not happy with, but that happens when it takes me...checks updates for this fic...two months to the freakin' day to write it. the whole sequence--until squall shows up anyway--seems too fake to me. i dunno; you guys tell me what you think, and what might help make it better, huh? i'll get back to more typing, cause i've got most of another chapter of this finished already.

ps: thanks to Twinklet45for putting new fics in our seftis C2 archive and to xahra99for writing such a fun and addicting seftis trilogy of fics. at some point i'll actually get around to reviewing those...

anyway, on to the story.

THE DISCLAIMER THAT I SHOULD MAKE A COOKIE CUTTER FOR: i don't own any of the final fantasy universe (games and strategy guides not withstanding) and am in no way trying to make money off the characters or settings of the final fantasy universes. this is just all in good fun, because i have far too many ideas running rampant in my devious little head.

* * *

**Chapter 8—12 Months later**

"Seifer Almsay, do you know why you're here today?"

The judge who had spoken was an older man—around sixty five—and a native of Esthar. He very clearly remembered the Sorceress Wars, and it showed in his tone.

"Yes, sir." Seifer tried not to let his nervousness show. This was a hearing that he did not think was going to go well.

"And what reason is that?" The other judges on the panel shifted a little nervously, and the prison warden exchanged a look with one of guards in the room.

_What's their deal?_ "My first parole hearing, sir."

"Tell me, Mister Almsay, what you think the results of this hearing will be." The chief judge leaned back in his chair to listen.

"Truthfully, sir, I expect you to list off my crimes, deny me parole and send me back to my cell."

"Why is that, Mister Almsay?"

He hadn't even been here five minutes, and Seifer was already tired of playing whatever game the judge was at. So, apparently was everyone else in the room, judging from their expressions. "Because I'm a murderer," he said, taking the man's bait.

"What would you do if you were released from prison today?"

_What?_ It wasn't a question he was expecting. He had to push down a few smartass answers before replying honestly, "I'd go home, sir."

"Home?"

"Balamb Garden."

"I see. Mister Almsay, you have been charged with crimes against humanity, multiple counts of murder, multiple counts of negligent homicide and multiple counts of assault. What do you have to say about this?"

"I did it, sir. I was under the control of the Sorceresses for some of it, but I did it. And nothing I can do will express how much I regret all of it." Seifer felt sure that the judge expected some long, drawn-out speech about his innocence, but he wasn't going to get it. He was guilty; and he was finally man enough to admit it.

With a pleased, if slightly surprised look on his face, the chief judge nodded. "Mister Almsay, in light of recent events—including a full pardon by the nation of Esthar—it is the decision of this board that you be granted your parole under the following conditions. You will have only one place of residence. You may not move from this place of residence for a period of seven years. You will not enter the boarders of the nations of Galbadia or Trabia for a period of seven years. You will report in to your parole officer every week via telecommunication or in person. You must report in person to your parole officer every two weeks. You may not carry a weapon on your person at any time for a period of seven years. You may not enter or attempt to enter any military or mercenary organization for a period of seven years. Any violation of these terms will result in your re-incarceration with no hope for parole. Are these terms clear to you?"

He was in shock. He noticed it in a detached sort of way, as he tried to force himself to stay calm and answer the judge. "Y-yes sir! The terms are perfectly clear." Though, he'd need a refresher course in an hour or so.

"Very well. Congratulations, Mister Almsay. After a few more formalities, you're a free man."

* * *

A few more formalities and three hours later, Seifer was walking out the front gate of the Desert Prison, wearing someone else's clothes and carrying his belongings in a box.

He was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the figure standing just outside until he heard his name as he was walking past.

"Seifer."

"Squall!" The blond nearly dropped his box in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Thought you could use a ride home." Squall shrugged. "And maybe we can talk."

_Squall wanting to talk? Did Hell freeze over while I was in there?_ Seifer started walking with the commander of Balamb Garden. "What could we possibly have to talk about?"

"Your future, maybe? Things like a job and a place to live." He paused, but not long enough for Seifer to say anything, then added, "Quistis."

Seifer stopped walking. "You know?"

"For a while. It wasn't hard to figure out from the way she acts." Squall stopped as well. "She doesn't know you've been paroled. She was out on mission when the call came in."

Seifer didn't have a reply. He wanted to ask where she was and what she was doing, but Squall couldn't tell him that. Finally, he settled for, "I was hoping to see her when I got there."

"I know. I'm sorry."


	9. surprise

**Chapter 9—12 months, 3 days later**

Quistis was exhausted when she stepped onto the transport that was bringing her home from her mission in the Centra Ruins. It has seemed like such a simple mission: take three much less experienced SeeDs to the ruins and collect the FG Tonberry. She was only supposed to provide support, while they did the real work.

Of course, it hadn't gone as planned. The younger SeeDs had been grossly under prepared. And, since she was there, the stronger Tonberries had come out, catching the rookies more than off guard.

_Whoever had taught these kids to junction should be left naked and weaponless in a room with Bahamut, _she thought sourly. _I will be checking some files after this mission…_

So, she'd done more work than she should have, gone through most of her personal supply of recovery and support items—including two phoenix pinions—and loaned out two of her four GFs. She had felt naked in combat with only Diablos and Siren to protect her, but the others had needed Doomtrain and Alexander much more.

At least Gilgamesh had been nice enough to show up from time to time to help them out.

Now, beaten and suffering from too much combat and too little sleep, they were heading home. Tonberry in tow.

She was going to have words with Squall about the other instructors when they got back in. But for now, she was going to put the two hour trip back to Balamb to good use.

As the transport took off, Quistis fell asleep.

* * *

Squall met them in the hanger when they landed. The younger SeeDs—she was trying hard not to call them kids, even in her head—were surprised and a little unnerved. Quistis just used his presence as proof that more was going on than she'd been told initially.

"Instructor Trepe, take everyone's GFs and put them in storage. Then report to my office." Squall's voice was hard. He was in commander mode and didn't want any questions.

"Yes, Commander," she replied.

She waited for the others to unjunction, then drew the GFs from them into herself. They were all newer GFs—except her own—and she decided to junction them to get a better feel for their abilities on her way to the storage facility.

They were as inexperienced as their handlers, but she found herself being interested in their abilities—particularly the one called Asura. It was a healing GF, with a large compliment of Command abilities to learn, including full-cure and treatment. Quistis made a mental note to train with that one later, especially if Squall was going to get in the habit of sending her on missions again.

As she entered the storage room, she looked sadly at the locker where they'd stored Seifer's weapon and gear.

_I should go see him again…_ Walking to the locker, she lad a hand on it and sighed. _God, I miss him so much. I never thought it would be this hard._

Quickly, she removed her hand a walked away, before Seifer became all she could think about. As per Squall's orders, she put the GFs into storage, then left for his office before she could become immersed in her depressing thoughts.

* * *

When she stepped off the lift and into Squall's office, she was greeted by Zell and Irvine. The cowboy was slouched against Squall's desk, and the martial artist was shadow boxing in one corner of the room.

"You look like hell, Quisty," Irvine told her as she dropped into a chair.

"I feel like it. What are you guys doing here?"

"Waiting to repot to Squall on our missions." The sharpshooter took of his hat and ran a hand over his hair. "Whoever's been training these new kids needs to be lined up for my class' target practice."

"Yours too?"

"And mine," Zell piped in. "They weren't even smart enough to bring GFs."

"Then how did they manage to pass their field exams?" Quistis asked.

"I don't think they did," Squall said from the doorway. "I think someone doctored their records."

The commander walked around his desk and dropped into his own chair.

"Last week, eight SeeDs died on relatively simple missions. So it got me wondering what was wrong. Background checks on them showed that they all transferred in from Galbadia at the same time. Your missions were less about collecting GFs we had missed and more about evaluating the transfers from Galbadia Garden last month. Judging by the nine samples you provided, they all need re-trained and re-tested. Suggestions?"

"Ship them back to Martine and make them his problem?" Zell said.

"Much as I'd like to, we can't." Squall scowled. "Galbadia isn't accepting transfers right now. Besides, it wouldn't solve the problem."

"Yeah, you're right," Zell replied.

"Special training refresher courses for everybody," Irvine put in. "That way, no one feels singled out."

Squall looked thoughtful. "That will require extra hours from some of you."

"If it prevents disasters like my last mission, I'm in," Quistis told him.

"All right. We'll try that then. And I'll look into hiring another instructor or two." Squall looked around the room at them. "Unless you have anything else, you're dismissed."

"Don't you want our reports?" Zell asked.

"Tomorrow." Squall sighed and rubbed hi forehead tiredly. "I've got too much to do tonight."

They all nodded. Quistis forced herself out of her chair with Irvine's help.

"Thanks," she said.

"No problem, darlin'," the cowboy said, matching his pace to hers as they left the office. "You wanna come to dinner with me an' Selphie?"

"I don't know, Irvine. I'd think you two would want some time alone after you just got back from your mission

Irvine smirked. "I'm too tired for alone time. Besides, you haven't' done anything with us forever."

Quistis considered it for a moment as they entered the elevator. She was hungry, but she was also exhausted, and really, really dirty.

When she turned to Irvine to refuse, he was wearing the sad puppy look that Selphie used when she wanted her way. Quistis burst out laughing.

"All right, I'll go. Just let me get a shower first. I must reek."

"A little," the sharpshooter admitted. "Walk you to your place?"

"I think I'll be all right," she replied. "It's pretty much bite bugs only between here and there."

"All right," he said as the got off the elevator at the first floor. "We'll come by and get you."

"See you then." The instructor began walking alone to the front gate.

She had been living in the "prison" facility since the power had been hooked up. That had made her apartment the guinea pig for just about everything else they'd done in the building, but they were now assured of truly bulletproof glass and T-Rexaur resistant walls. It was a learning experience, but she was very glad to be out of the dorms.

The short walk was uneventful. She didn't even hear the buzz of a bite bug, let alone see one. Quistis was glad for the respite; she wasn't sure that Save the Queen would even move until she cleaned the monster guts from its chain links.

When she entered her apartment, something felt wrong to her. She froze in place, listening and surveying her living room.

She spotted the leather coat at the same time she realized the shower was running.

"What the hell?" She unhooked her whip and gave it an experimental flick. It was stiff, but it would have to be good enough.

Quietly, she crept toward the bathroom. As she neared the door, the water turned off. Quistis stopped moving, and waited in the hallway for the intruder to come out.

A few minutes later, the door opened and her uninvited guest stepped out. Quistis felt her heart stop.

"Seifer?"


	10. Promise

**Chapter 10—Same day**

He had a towel wrapped around his waist and was using another to dry his hair.

"Quisty?" He froze mid-motion, almost comically, with the towel draped over his right eye.

"What are you doing here?" Quistis whispered, dropping Save the Queen.

"The pipes in my place broke. Whole back half of the apartment's flooded." Seifer shrugged and went back to toweling his hair. "Your apartment's the only other one with running water."

"That's not what I meant." She took a step forward, reaching a hand out toward him. Then she pulled back a little, as if she were afraid touching him would prove it all no more than a dream.

He tossed the towel he was using to the floor and stepped forward to take her hand.

"I'm really here, Quisty," he said, pulling her into a hug. "Laguna pardoned me, and they let me out."

"Oh, God, Seifer." Softly, she began crying.

"Shh…Its all right. I'm not going anywhere."

"Promise me," she whispered.

"I promise." Tipping her head up, he sealed the promise with a kiss.

* * *

and there it is kiddos. the end. tho there is a sequel. sort of. all questions will be answered there. somehow, as i was writing this tho, it just sort of started blending into Taken, and the two became companions in the same universe. i guess this means that i'll be doing lots more work on that one soon. let me know what you thought!

eerian


	11. warmest homecoming

_Sometimes, when you write a story, you think its finished and it will sit there for months or years only to pop back up at the most unexpected time, saying, "Hey, I'm not done after all!" Such is the case here. I typed up chapters nine and ten with a great sense of accomplishment, thinking that **Free As A Bird** would be my second finished "published" fanfic. I realized that there were a lot of unfinished ends to tie up, but I was planning on doing that in **Taken.**_

_So, imagine my surprise when this story tapped me on the shoulder and said to me, "Hey, I'm not done after all!" with a bit of sadistic glee in its voice. Shortly thereafter, I had the following chapter—and at least two more—lined out in the mental imagery of my mind._

_So, to all of you who said or felt that this story wasn't finished, I have to say:_

"_Okay, you were right."_

**Chapter 11—Same Day**

"Seifer," she said as they broke apart, "I'm really glad you're here, but I need a shower."

Smirking, he replied. "Yeah, you do. And I'd burn the clothes. You'll never get that much rotting monster stink out of them."

"Thanks a lot." Quistis smiled sardonically. "Its nice to know that some things never change."

"Its why you love me," was Seifer's flip reply.

"No, its not." She laid a hand along the side of his face. "I love you for so much more than that."

"Do you really?" the gunblader asked seriously.

"Do I really what?"

"Love me."

"More than anything. I wish I'd told you sooner."

"I'm glad you told me now." Seifer pressed a kiss into the palm of her hand, and then grimaced. "Ugh, monster guck. Let's get you cleaned up."

Still stunned by his presence, Quistis didn't protest as Seifer led her to the bathroom. In a kind of daze, she watched him fill the bathtub with warm water. Her first protest came when the ex-knight reached for the zipper on her top.

"Seifer, what are you doing?" Tiredly, she wrapped a hand around his wrist, halting his movement.

"Giving you a bath," he replied. "I thought that was obvious."

"I have many years worth of experience in the area of bathing." She pushed his hand away. "I can handle it myself."

Seifer smirked. "And drown in the process. You're too tired to stand for much longer." His smirk softened into a more real smile. "Let me take care of you. I promise I won't do anything you don't want."

Quistis was quiet for a moment, surprised at the sincerity in his tone. She would have expected him to be much more forceful about getting his way. After a long moment of looking into his eyes, she relented.

"All right. But just the bath." The agreement was both a concession to her tiredness and to the fact that they had been apart for far too long.

The gunblader's smile widened at her words. "Absolutely nothing but a bath."

"And you have to put some pants on."

Seifer looked down at the towel still wrapped around his waist and blushed slightly. "Right. No problem."

He turned to a stack of clothes that she hadn't noticed sitting on the bathroom counter. Not entirely sure _why_ she was doing so, Quistis averted her eyes while he removed the towel and pulled his pants on.

_I must be crazy for doing this._

Gently, Seifer pulled her from her thought by pulling down the tattered remains of her right glove.

"I don't feel like this is quite real yet," he said, pulling down her left glove as well. "I thought of you every day while I was in there. This feels like a dream that I'm going to wake up from, just when it gets to the good parts."

Quistis looked up at him, fully agreeing with his idea of dreamlike quality. "I know. I'm expecting to wake up on that transport."

"Squall told me something funny when he picked me up," Seifer continued, unzipping her top and sliding it gently off her shoulders. "He said that you guys were going to have me remanded into SeeD custody."

She reveled in the feeling of his fingers running over her skin, almost wishing that she wasn't too exhausted for more than a bath. "I would have told you, but I didn't want to get your hopes up if it didn't work."

"Thanks for that." The ex-knight continued undressing her, unzipping her leather skirt and sliding it down off her hips.

For a moment, Quistis had a sudden fear that Seifer wouldn't stop with just a bath as he knelt down and began unzipping her boots. Looking down, though, she saw nothing untoward in the green eyes turned back up at her.

"I love you," he said simply, washing away all her fears in an instant.

She knelt down in front of him, heart singing with joy at finally hearing the words she had hoped to hear for over a year. "Say it again."

"I love you, Quistis," he repeated.

She flung her arms around him, not caring that she was practically naked and that he was shirtless. "I love you, too, Seifer."

Seifer pressed his lips to hers, kissing her with a year's worth of repressed emotions. Quistis responded eagerly, releasing her own torrent of pent-up emotion.

They were interrupted by someone knocking on the apartment door.

Quistis broke away quickly. "Oh! I was supposed to go out for dinner with Irvine and Selphie!"

"But we were just getting started," he whined.

The instructor reached for her bathrobe as Seifer stood up.

"I'll get it," he said frustratedly, stomping off toward the door as the knock sounded again.


	12. Dinner with Friends

_sorry kids, no smut yet. look for that next chapter. ;-)

* * *

_

**Chapter 12—Same Day**

Seifer smirked at Irvine's rather dumfounded expression when he opened the door. Obviously, Selphie hadn't told the cowboy he was back.

"What do you want?" the gunblader asked, ignoring Selphie as the young woman popped around Irvine with a Cheshire grin on her face.

"Uh-oh," she said, "Irvie, I think we interrupted something important."

"Selphie, what's he doin' here?" the cowboy finally managed to ask.

"We-ell," she replied, drawing out the syllable for emphasis, "He's out on parole. And Squall went ahead with putting him up here."

"Yeah, but why's he in Quisty's room, darlin'?"

"My plumbing's broken," Seifer, answered, preventing Selphie from implying any further impropriety.

"Uh huh. Whatever you say." Selphie gave him a smirk.

Irvine's expression said that he would rather be discussing anything besides Seifer and Quistis' potential sex life. Seifer couldn't blame him—he didn't exactly want to discuss it in public forum either.

"Seifer, are you going to let them in or not?" Quistis asked, coming up behind him and laying a hand on the small of his back.

Selphie put her hands to her mouth, squealing in delight when she was the gunblader step back from the door and wrap an arm around the bathrobe-clad instructor. "That's so sweet!"

Irvine shook his head at his girlfriend's antics as he stepped inside. Shaking off his confusion at Seifer's presence, he asked, "Are ya still goin' out with us, Quisty?"

Quistis flicked a questioning glace over to Seifer. "I don't know…"

The cowboy gave her a warm smile. "I ain't Zell, Quisty. Seifer's welcome too."

Quistis made no attempt to hide her surprised reaction. "Are you sure? I mean—"

"Quistis." Irvine's tone stopped her attempted speech. "What happened during the war doesn't matter. He proved that he was an okay guy afterwards. I trust your judgment. Seifer's welcome to come too."

"Yeah!" Selphie agreed. "And we've got lots of catching up to do, too! Please come!"

Seifer was surprised at the couple's enthusiasm for him to accompany them to dinner. He shrugged and looked at Quistis. "It beats frozen dinners again. We can go if you want to."

The smile Quistis gave him was brilliant. "Just let me dunk my head in the bath and get dressed."

"Take your time, darlin'," Irvine told her. "The restaurant ain't goin' anywhere."

Quistis was surprised at the easy camaraderie that flowed between Seifer and Irvine. She would have believed that they had been friends forever if she hadn't known that Irvine left eh orphanage before Seifer—and that Seifer still didn't really remember most of his time there. Her friend's easy acceptance of the ex-Knight warmed her heart with pride and a new respect for the cowboy.

If only Zell would take the news half so well.

"Yoo hoo, Quisty?" She blinked when Selphie waved a hand in front of her eyes. "You still with us?"

Quistis gave a rueful grin. "Sorry. Just thinking too hard again."

"There's a surprise." The smaller woman rolled her eyes. "Anyway, the waitress is here."

"Oh, sorry!" Quickly she ordered.

"Its not like you to zone out like that, Quisty," Irvine said after the waitress left. "You all right?"

Seifer shot Quistis a concerned look as she replied. "I'm fine. Tired, but fine. I really was just thinking too hard."

"About?" Selphie prompted.

"How things are going to work out with Seifer here."

"You guys are gonna live happily ever after!" the brunette exclaimed.

Quistis shook her head at her friend. "I meant with everyone else, not between Seifer and I. Not everyone is going to take this as well as Irvine."

"Like who?" Seifer asked, taking a drink of his water.

"People like Zell and General Caraway. People who hate you."

"We can worry about the people who hate me _if_ they become a problem. And I think you should let me handle Zell in my own way." The gunblader put an arm around the instructor, pulling her close to his side. "But for now, we just need to focus on us."

Quistis sighed, knowing he was right. She couldn't help but think that her friendship with Zell was going to be seriously jeopardized, though.

Noting that Quisty's dark mood hadn't really lightened, Selphie changed the subject. "So, what theme should we go with for the Garden Festival this year?"

Seifer and Irvine groaned.

Seifer was surprised at how much fun dinner had been. He and Selphie had already talked out their differences—and she had threatened several important body parts if he hurt Quistis—but he really hadn't know what to expect from her sharpshooter boyfriend.

Irvine had lived up to his words to Quistis, though, and then some. Not only had he welcomed Seifer into the group, he had treated the gunblader as if he had always been there—and that he belonged.

It was a feeling that the blond man had never thought he would find again.

He smiled at Quistis, who was leaning sleepily against his side as they walked back into their apartment building. It was astounding how she had waited for him to come home; she made him feel like the luckiest man alive.

"I love you," he told her as they reached her door.

The smile Quistis gave him in return was dazzling despite her exhaustion. "I love you too."

Unable to resist the urge, he bent down and kissed her. She responded enthusiastically, placing her right hand on his cheek and tangling the fingers of her left in his hair.

"I should let you get some sleep," Seifer told her when they broke apart.

"Stay with me," Quistis replied.

He smirked at her. "Babe, if I stay, you won't be getting any sleep tonight."

"Not tonight. Forever."

At her words, his fingers were pushing in her lock code even as his lips crashed into hers again. When the door opened, the gunblader swept the instructor up into his arms and stepped into her apartment.

3


End file.
